Neighbor states Minnesota and Wisconsin have been granted exemptions from the National Voter Registration Act’s public disclosure provision for over 30 years. However, the Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF) has filed federal lawsuits on Wednesday challenging this special treatment. The lawsuits argue that these exemptions violate the principle of equal state sovereignty and should be declared invalid.
The National Voter Registration Act, also known as the Motor Voter Act, was passed by Congress in 1993 to simplify voter registration processes and ensure the accuracy of voter lists. It requires states to make records related to voter list maintenance activities available for public inspection. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Idaho, New Hampshire, Maine, and Wyoming were exempted from this transparency requirement due to their same-day voter registration policies. However, PILF argues that this creates inequality among the states, as 20 states and D.C. adhere to the NVRA’s transparency requirements while Minnesota, Wisconsin, and a few others do not.
In Wisconsin, concerns have been raised about the high cost of obtaining voter roll information and the refusal to release complete voter information. With over 3.43 million active voters, acquiring the full report costs up to $12,500, making it difficult for individuals and organizations to monitor voter roll changes effectively.
The lawsuit also targets Minnesota’s Secretary of State, Steve Simon, alleging that the state’s law restricting the release of voter information conflicts with the NVRA. Both Minnesota and Wisconsin are members of the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), which aims to improve voter rolls accuracy but has been criticized for inaccuracies.
PILF argues that transparency should be upheld for all states and that exemptions granted in 1993 should no longer be in place. The foundation aims to ensure that all states are held to the same transparency standards under the National Voter Registration Act.
